NBSCCCI Reviews 2012 – Ian Eliott

SEVEN CHILD SAFEGUARDING REVIEWS COMPLETED BY NBSCCCI

On the 5th September seven Safeguarding Review Reports are being published by the National Board for the Safeguarding of Children in the Catholic Church in Ireland on four dioceses and three religious congregations.

The dioceses include Kildare and Leighlin, Limerick, Cork and Ross, and Clonfert. The religious congregations are the Congregation of the Holy Spirit (Spiritans), the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart (MSC), and the male Dominicans. The inclusion for the first time of three religious bodies represents an important development in the work of the NSBCCCI. The dioceses and congregations examined have all published the reports today and they are also available on the NSBCCCI website.

Good practice and sound development, found across the different Church authorities, has been welcomed by the Board, which also noted the need to learn from examples of poor practice.

“All allegations that were examined within the Review process have been reported to the appropriate statutory authorities,” CEO Ian Elliott said today. “Sadly, some of these had been very much delayed. However, where this was found, the congregations and dioceses involved are implementing fully any recommendations made through the review process and each is now in a stronger position in their safeguarding capacity and practice than was the case when the reviews were undertaken initially.”

The seven bodies reviewed have committed to transparency and to change where this is needed. In some, poor practice was found, yet publication of the reports has been undertaken by all.

In February 2009, the three sponsoring bodies for the National Board for Safeguarding Children in the Catholic Church in Ireland, (the Irish Bishop’s Conference, the Conference of Religious of Ireland, and the Irish Missionary Union,) formally adopted the safeguarding standards and guidance of the National Board. This second tranche of reviews indicates that full compliance has not yet been achieved by all of those reviewed, although many examples of excellent practice were found.

“A key emerging lesson from these reviews is the importance of objective, independent, standards based monitoring of practice,” said John Morgan, Chairman of NBSCCCI. “It is not enough simply to have policies in place. You must also have ways to confirm full compliance with those policies. This is the benefit that the review process brings to practice in the Church. It is the unique contribution of the NBSCCCI and it is essential that it should continue to be supported by all those in authority across the Church.”